82 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



objection of having the beauty of clean fruit lost under a film of 

 fungicide that while not particularly poisonous is decidedly un- 

 palatable, consisting of lime and sulphate of copper. A sensation 

 was created in New York two years ago because grapes were thus 

 marketed, and the same process for stored fruit is not here recom- 

 mended, although its effectiveness as a preservative is granted. 



A decay that might be mistaken for the last mentioned is 

 caused by a fungus of a widely separated order. It is shown in 

 Fig. 6. This might be called the black rot, as it has a strong tend- 

 ency to turn the affected portions of a dark color. One of the 

 characteristic features is the almost black pimples formed in con- 

 siderable numbers beneath the skin, which they finally rupture 

 and then discharge large numbers of dark-olive spores. This fun- 



Fio. 6. APPLE BLACK EOT. 



gus is a described species bearing the name Sphc&ropsis malorum, 

 Pk. It may be seen in early apples before they begin to ripen, 

 and the windfalls as they lie upon the ground become badly in- 

 fested with the Sphceropsis. It is not confined to the apple, but 

 thrives destructively upon quinces and pears as well. This decay 

 in its habits of growth calls to mind the fact that the basin is the 

 weakest point of fruits like the three above mentioned, for in 

 most instances the black rot begins at the free end where the 

 remnants of the flower may be still adhering, and very likely as- 

 sist in the fungus gaining a foothold. This decay, like the bitter 

 rot, is amenable to treatment, and therefore, in order to check 

 their destructive work in the storeroom, the fungicide needs to 



